Why did Las Vegas become a town in the middle of the desert? There is water here. Five thousand years ago, the Anasazi Indians passed through here and would stop for water. Later, the Southern Paiute Tribes also stopped here for water.

Las Vegas exists in the Mojave Desert because it was originally founded as a critical water stop for travelers and the burgeoning railroad industry. In 1829, Spanish explorer Rafael Rivera discovered the area's natural artesian springs and lush wild grasses, naming it "Las Vegas," which is Spanish for "The Meadows." Because it was one of the few places with reliable fresh water on the trail between New Mexico and California, it became a vital stopover for wagon trains and later for the San Pedro, Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad in 1905. The city's growth was further accelerated in the 1930s by the construction of the nearby Hoover Dam, which provided thousands of jobs during the Great Depression and subsequently offered abundant, cheap electricity and water from Lake Mead. When Nevada legalized gambling in 1931 and established lenient divorce laws, entrepreneurs capitalized on the existing infrastructure and the steady flow of people passing through the rail hub, transforming a dusty watering hole into the global entertainment capital it is today.